SUWANEE, Ga. – In exclusive voting by the league’s head soccer coaches, Luis Green of Texas Lutheran University was selected 2022 SCAC Offensive Player-of-the-Year for a record fifth consecutive year while Colorado College’s Curtis Hale and University of St. Thomas’ Hamilton Estrada were tabbed as SCAC Co-Defensive Players-of-the-Year. Complete Release
In that same balloting, Trinity University’s Adam Knutson earned Newcomer-of-the-Year honors while University of St. Thomas head coach, Ian Clerihew, was named SCAC Coach-of-the-Year for the second consecutive season.
A senior forward from Monterrey, Mexico, Luis Green closed out his career in style, rewriting the conference record books en route to claiming his league record fifth-straight SCAC Offensive Player-of-the-Year honor. Green currently leads the SCAC in both goals (19) and points (44) and is second in game-winning goals (3), shots (77) and shots on goal (39). He capped off his historic career with a five-goal performance against Austin College in a win to bring his career total to an SCAC record 81 goals in just 78 games played. With that effort, he became just the fourth player in conference history, and the first since 2010, to score five or more goals in one contest. Green stands alone with his career marks, leaving Seguin first in SCAC history in goals scored (81), points (182), goals per game (1.04) and points per game (2.33). A nine-time SCAC Offensive Player-of-the-Week honoree during his TLU career, including three times this season, Green finishes his career tied for 11th all-time in NCAA history for career goals. In fact, his 81 goals are the most to cap off a career since Andrew Jenkins of St. Scholastica finished his career with 90 goals back in 2014.
Green received eight votes in the balloting for Offensive Player-of-the-Year honors while sophomore forward Taty Aleman of St. Thomas received the remaining first-place vote.
Curtis Hale, a sophomore defender from Richmond, Va., anchored a Colorado College defensive effort that led the SCAC with a stout 0.63 goals against average in conference play and allowed the fewest goals with just five in eight league fixtures. The CC Tigers also finished tied for third in shutouts with three of their four clean sheets on the year coming in league action. An all-around threat, Hale finished second on the team with six goals and tied for second with 15 total points – with both representing career highs. A two-time SCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Week honoree during the season, Hale also earned SCAC All-Tournament Team accolades last weekend. He is the fourth Colorado College player to earn SCAC DPOTY honors and the first since 2017 when Theo Hooker received the honor.
A sophomore defender from Houston, Texas, St. Thomas’ Hamilton Estrada spearheaded a group that currently leads the SCAC in goals against average (0.83) and is tied for first with just 15 goals allowed. Estrada is the heart of a defense that allowed just two goals last weekend as the Celts claimed their second-straight SCAC Tournament title and head into the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history. St. Thomas enters NCAA postseason play with five shutouts on the year, currently fourth in the SCAC. Estrada, who was named SCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Week in September and earned All-Tournament accolades last weekend, finished the season with three assists on the offensive side of the ball. He becomes the third Celt in the last four seasons to earn at least a share of SCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Year honors, joining Luis Bencomo (2021) and Carlos Marquez (2019).
Hale and Estrada both received three votes to share the SCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Year honor. JonConnor Rule of Trinity University received two votes and Jack Viles of Southwestern University received the remaining first-place vote.
Adam Knutson, a first-year midfielder from Dripping Springs, Texas, made an immediate impact for Trinity, finishing the season tied for second on the Tigers’ team in both goals (6) and points (15). He made 14 starts this season, including getting the nod in all eight SCAC fixtures where he scored five of his six goals. His five SCAC tallies ranked fifth among all players and his six goals on the season finished tied for eighth. Among first-year players, Knutson led the SCAC in both goals and points and finished tied for first in assists with three. Knutson is the eighth different Trinity student-athlete to earn at least a share of SCAC Newcomer-of-the-Year honors, but the first since Christian Sakshaug won in 2015.
Knutson received six votes in Newcomer-of-the-Year voting while first-year goalkeeper Jasper Broad of Colorado College received the remaining three first-place votes.
In his seventh season as head coach of the Celts, Ian Clerihew led St. Thomas to its second-straight SCAC Tournament title and currently carries a 14-1-3 record heading into this weekend’s opening round of the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. Last weekend marked the third consecutive SCAC Tournament final for the Celts and after finishing runner-up during the COVID-shortened 2020-21 spring season, Clerihew’s squads have brought back-to-back titles back to Houston. In three seasons in the SCAC, St. Thomas has produced a cumulative 21-5-6 conference mark and the Celts are 58-26-16 overall since Clerihew arrived on campus six seasons ago. Clerihew is just the fourth coach in SCAC men’s soccer history to earn Coach-of-the-Year honors in back-to-back seasons and the first since Paul McGinlay was recognized in both 2015 and 2016.
To view the entire 2022 All-SCAC Men's Soccer Team, click here.
